The US military shot down an Iranian drone as it “aggressively approached” an American aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea on Tuesday, February 3.
An F-35C stealth fighter jet which took off from the USS Abraham Lincoln warship shot down the drone “in self-defence” to protect the aircraft carrier and its personnel, US Central Command spokesman Capt Tim Hawkins said.
The ship was approximately 500 miles from the Iranian coast when the drone approached it with “unclear intent”.
The drone was shot down by a F-35 fighter jet, and no American service members were harmed in the incident, Hawkins said in a statement.
U.S. Central Command also confirmed that hours later, forces with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps harassed a U.S.-flagged and crewed oil tanker, Stena Imperative, that was moving through the Strait of Hormuz. Hawkins said two Iranian military boats and an Iranian drone approached the vessel at “high speeds and threatened to board and seize the tanker.”
The USS McCaul, a guided-missile destroyer that was in the area, responded to the scene to escort the vessel with air support from the U.S. Air Force, according to Hawkins.
“CENTCOM forces are operating at the highest levels of professionalism and ensuring the safety of U.S. personnel, ships, and aircraft in the Middle East,” he said. “Continued Iranian harassment and threats in international waters and airspace will not be tolerated. Iran’s unnecessary aggression near U.S. forces, regional partners, and commercial vessels increases risks of collision, miscalculation, and regional destabilization.”
The U.S. military has in recent days built up its presence near Iran with what President Trump called a “massive armada.” The president told reporters last month that the military was sending ships to the Middle East “just in case,” as his administration watches Iran’s response to massive protests that broke out late last year.
Thousands of protesters are believed to have been killed in response to a crackdown on demonstrations by Iranian authorities.